Officer leaps from ferry to rescue teen
Last Updated: Tuesday, August 31, 2010 | 1:33 PM CST
CBC News
The Bloodvein River, where the teenager jumped from the ferry boat, runs through the Bloodvein First Nation, about 250 kilometres north of Winnipeg. (Google Maps) An RCMP officer leapt over the side of a ferry boat in central Manitoba to rescue a teenager who had jumped off.
The incident happened Monday at about 4:30 p.m. on the Bloodvein River, about 250 kilometres north of Winnipeg, on the east side of Lake Winnipeg.
According to police, a 17-year-old male passenger, possibly intoxicated, was threatening to jump off while the boat was in the middle of the river.
The ferry captain turned the vessel around and returned to the dock where he was met by two members of the Bloodvein RCMP detachment.
When the officers attempted to speak to the youth, he backed away and without warning jumped over the side into the river, police said.
RCMP Cpl. Kevin Elliott, who had put on an inflatable life vest, immediately leapt over the side and into the water after the teen, said RCMP spokesman Const. Miles Hiebert.
'I only had one chance to get to him as he appeared to be sinking.'—RCMP Cpl. Kevin Elliott
The water was about three metres deep and the officer and teenager were about seven meters from shore.
"I only had one chance to get to him as he appeared to be sinking," Elliott stated in his report, according to a press release issued by the RCMP.
"I jumped in right away and was just able to catch his clothing. We were well over our heads in the water, and I had to swim with the boy to pull him to shore."
An RCMP member on shore pulled Elliott and the teen from the water when they were close enough.
The teen was taken to the local nursing station for observation and was reported to be uninjured and in good condition.
Other than a good soaking, the RCMP officer is also all right, Hiebert said.
The teen was later released from police custody without being charged.
He told police he had changed his mind about the ferry trip and wanted to try to swim across the river and back to the dock.
With files from Leslie McLarenShare Tools
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